July 24 (Reuters) – Four Palestinians and one Israeli were killed in a shooting incident in the occupied West Bank on Friday, according to Israeli and Palestinian health officials.
The Israeli military said it had been dispatched to the area, southwest of the Palestinian city of Nablus, after reports of an attack on Israeli civilians who were hiking there. The military said a Palestinian had stolen a weapon from local security personnel and fired at the Israeli civilians.
Palestinian officials said Palestinians from the West Bank town of Tal had been attacked by the Israeli civilians and that four had been shot dead and four wounded by both Israeli civilians and Israeli soldiers.
A temporary closure was imposed on the city of Nablus and the Tal area, while Israeli troops set up roadblocks and pursued the assailants, the military said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was convening an emergency meeting to discuss a response, his office said in a statement.
Essam Saifi, a local leader in the Palestinian Fatah party from Tal, told Reuters in a phone call that about 25 to 30 Jewish settlers initially attacked the eastern area of Tal and tried to break into two houses there. The residents came out to confront them and the settlers opened fire, Saifi said.
Half an hour later, Saifi said, the Israelis returned and attacked the western part of the town, striking a minor with a weapon. This caused chaos and then the Israeli military arrived and started shooting, along with the settlers, Saifi told Reuters.
(Reporting by Eman Abouhassira, Ali Sawafta and Ahmed Elimam; Editing by Joe Bavier and Kevin Liffey)
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